Wilkerson a force on Jets' 'D'

Lineman has foes making game plans around him

Associated Press

Associated Press

Published 11:09 pm, Friday, December 14, 2012

Arizona Cardinals quarterback Ryan Lindley (14) is sacked by New York Jets defensive end Muhammad Wilkerson, back, as safety Yeremiah Bell (37) and linebacker Bart Scott (57) help defend during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 2, 2012, in East Rutherford, N.J. The Jets won 7-6. (AP Photo/Bill Kostroun)

The New York Jets' big defensive lineman is anything but timid on the field.

Wilkerson is developing into a dominating force in his second NFL season, and while he's not yet a household name, he's a big reason the Jets' once-struggling defense is ranked eighth in the league.

"It's really encouraging just how professional he's been and how coachable he's been," defensive coordinator Mike Pettine said Friday. "Here's a guy that's not repeating mistakes, so the learning curve with him is just so much faster."

Wilkerson, a first-round pick out of Temple last year, leads the Jets with four sacks and 26 quarterback pressures, and is fourth with 76 tackles. He has forced three fumbles and returned one for a touchdown. It all has coach Rex Ryan hoping Wilkerson's off-season includes a trip to Hawaii the week before the Super Bowl — if the Jets don't make it there, of course.

"I promise you that Muhammad Wilkerson gets a vote for Pro Bowl from Jacksonville," Ryan said earlier this week. "I don't think there's any doubt about that. It was a dominant performance for Mo. It seems like we say it each week."

Added fellow defensive lineman Mike DeVito: "I can't speak enough good things about him. He's been a true vet from the moment he got here. If he doesn't make the Pro Bowl this year, it's going to be soon."

All that sort of talk makes Wilkerson happy, but again, he's almost made uncomfortable with the kudos. "I give the credit to (Ryan)," Wilkerson said. "I'm proud to be a Jet. They brought me here. I'm going to continue to play like a Jet and do my best for the defense."

As he did during one drive in the third quarter of the Jets' 17-10 last Sunday.

On first down, he smacked into Chad Henne, who threw an incomplete pass. Wilkerson popped Henne even harder on the next play, causing another errant throw. On third down, Wilkerson blew between two offensive lineman and slammed Henne into the ground for a sack.

"Statistically, he had one sack, but this guy, over and over again, (running) backs are having to pick him up," Ryan said. "It's rare to have an interior lineman get the attention from the backs. Usually that's assigned to an outside edge rusher, but the backs are helping on Mo time and time again. It just shows you what the teams are thinking about this guy.

"What a performance by him."

The 6-foot-4, 315-pound Wilkerson showed signs of what was to come near the end of his rookie season last year, when he was routinely standing out in games and finished with three sacks.

"I just wanted to achieve more than I did last year," Wilkerson said, "and have a better season than I did last year and just keep on improving for however many years to come."

He spent the off-season trying to improve his technique and learn the inner workings of the defense, focusing on things such as what to do when a guard moves his hands a certain way or how to rebound on a play in which he has gotten beaten by an offensive lineman and still make an impact.

The development of his "football IQ," as Wilkerson called it, has been a product of lots of work with defensive line coach Karl Dunbar.

"We saw it at the end of last year and he really carried it over this year, and he's playing at such a high level," Pettine said. "But he's doing all the little things well."